We’ve seen Arno’s correspondence with BioWare, and it’s fair to say that he’s not been as controlled as he could have been. While there’s been no abuse or inappropriate language, he’s certainly cocky. BioWare’s response so far has been to repeatedly state the rules to Arno, with a moderator explaining to him,

“It’s not like you get to pick and choose your own punishment when you break the rules. The various punishments, up to and including permanent bans, EA account termination, and loss of access to entitlements, is very clearly laid out and is part of the rules you agreed to follow and be governed by.”

I can’t wait until I’m blocked from entering bars for getting into arguments on Facebook!

So there you go then. A strange one indeed, after he was told by both EA’s live support, and the moderator who locked the thread discussing the matter (who declined to speak to us), the opposite. But good news for Arno, who can finally play the game he’s paid for.

Based in Chişinău, the capital of Moldova, Iskbank.com has been operating in its current incarnation since December of 2009, and claims to have been in operation for three years prior. The owner and primary operator of the site is known as Vadim, although it’s impossible to know if there is any relation to the Eve character of the same name. Records indicate that Iskbank.com has somewhere between 2 and 5 employees, although this is only an estimate. They appear to also operate eveisk.ru, a Russian-language mirror of Iskbank.com.

The RMT shop has a spokesman (really?) who denies everything (really!) but Evenews24 is on the case:

While we can understand why Iskbank.com would refuse to confirm the data we received, EveNews24 staff spent a great deal of time talking to customers whose names were on this list. The vast majority of those we spoke to confirmed that they were Iskbank.com customers. Some of their stories will be told tomorrow. In the mean time, we stand by our story.

As a colleague, I am sad to see John go, but our vision remains clear,” says Emmert. “Cryptic continues to develop great gaming experiences while ensuring the success of its current projects, Champions Online: Free for All, Star Trek Online and Neverwinter.

Of course, most gamers already thought Emmert was in charge, since ever since Bill Roper’s departure he was by far Cryptic’s most visible employee – but he has moved swiftly in the space of a year from Creative Director to COO to CEO. Next stop – orbital mind control lasers.